Sheriff Ric L. Bradshaw is a career law enforcement professional responsible for leading the largest law enforcement agency in Palm Beach County. Sheriff Bradshaw has a successful track record of forty (40) years in law enforcement. He rose through the ranks of the West Palm Beach Police Department and in 1996 was appointed Chief of Police. On January 4, 2005, Sheriff Bradshaw was sworn in as Sheriff of Palm Beach County.

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Tuesday, September 11, 2012

It wasn’t even a close race as Sheriff Ric Bradshaw we
re-elected to the Office of County Sheriff for Palm Beach County Florida with
79% of the votes. Bradshaw had 93,327 votes, and his two opponents Joe Talley
had 20,848 and Cleamond Lee Walker had 4,609 respectively.

Dateline: Palm
Beach, Florida, September 5, 2012 – The race initially had a few ruffled
feathers, with accusations of favoritism by Talley, but after the election
results came in, it was clear that the voters loved the job, and public
service, that the Sheriff and his Office was performing. According to the
August 14th edition of the SunSentinel.com, “It's a third term for the county's top crime fighter.
Incumbent Palm Beach County sheriff Ric Bradshaw finished far ahead of his two
challengers in the race for sheriff, easily toppling longshot opponents Joe
Talley and Cleamond Lee Walker.”

Sheriff Bradshaw said this about his victory, "We just got
declared the winner and it's a verification that the people of Palm Beach
County think the men and women of the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office have
been doing a fantastic job over the past eight years,"

After the election Sheriff Bradshaw reiterated his commitment to
fighting crime in Palm Beach County and said, “The war against street
gangs will continue in his third term, and that's our main focus because that's
what keeps people safe in our neighborhoods. The gang fight is not going to be
over with, we're in the middle of it."

About

Sheriff Ric Bradshaw is a career
law enforcement professional responsible for leading the largest law
enforcement agency in Palm Beach County. Sheriff Bradshaw has a successful
track record of forty years in law enforcement. He rose through the ranks of
the West Palm Beach Police Department and in 1996 was appointed Chief of
Police. On January 4, 2005, Sheriff Bradshaw was sworn in
as Sheriff of Palm Beach County. Sheriff
Bradshaw is the
thirteenth sheriff to serve as the county's chief law enforcement officer since
the agency's origin in 1909. The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office has six
departments - Legal Affairs, Field Operations, Community Operations,
Corrections, Support Services, and Administrative Services. The Palm Beach
County Sheriff's Office is comprised of 4,000 employees and approximately 5,500
volunteers. Sheriff Bradshaw has extensive knowledge and training in all
aspects of law enforcement with special emphasis on Domestic Security, Field
Operations and community based policing.

With a staff of 14 deputies
and commanders, our unit is tasked with everything from keeping illegal
immigrants and drug runners from landing on our shore to preventing boating
accidents and reducing "boating under the influence" incidents in our
parks. They are also dive and rescue experts who search underneath the water
surface for people and property in virtually any weather or water conditions.
In addition, we have four highly trained volunteer civilians, who work just as
hard in protecting and saving lives on the water.

Patrolling miles and miles of
these waterways is not easy. Over the years, the number of boats and personal
watercrafts has skyrocketed, and on certain busy weekends, many of these
waterways are congested, creating conditions for accidents and reckless behavior.
As a result, my marine deputies are constantly checking boaters for mandatory
safety equipment so they are aware of their responsibilities.

We’ve been spending a lot of
time, as of late, reducing rowdy behavior on Peanut Island, a popular hotspot
for boating off Riviera Beach. The county banned drinking alcohol there in May,
but my deputies are still keeping the peace in the waters off the island where
hundreds of boaters gather in the shallow waters on many weekends.

Since the September 11th
terrorist attacks, the marine unit has taken on a higher-priority role. It’s on
the frontlines, as my deputies work with our partners, such as the U.S. Coast
Guard, in monitoring threats coming in from the ocean. Using an advanced radar
system, they can track suspicious boats up and down our coastline. We also
patrol the Port of Palm Beach, escorting cruise and container ships to ensure
safe passage into the deeper waters of the ocean.

Again, a large part of what
the unit does is educate.

My deputies often board boats
to encourage passengers to wear personal flotation devices at all times. They
also urge boat operators to perform routine safety checks before heading out,
making sure the watercraft has the proper safety equipment on board, including
a working fire extinguisher, flares, and a horn or whistle.

They also ask boaters to check
weather reports before leaving the dock since weather, especially in tropical
South Florida, can change rapidly on the water, turning a pleasant day turning
into a dangerous situation.

I hope you all find the time
this summer to enjoy our beautiful waterways. Be safe out there.

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, the Palm Beach County Sheriffs Office and the local Businesses of Palm Beach County are on the look out for any Terrorist activities in the area. Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, backed by the Homeland Security Bureau, has initialized the Businesses Partner Against Terrorism or BPAT for short. This program teams local businesses with law enforcement to utilize their expertise in recognizing unusual activity within their fields.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Sheriff Bradshaw says bullying is a major concern across the country and Palm Beach County is no exception. Bullying at the school, online through the internet or even at the playground, bullying is not only wrong, it's a crime in the state of Florida. Bullies are also far more likely to commit crimes once they grow up. Please, monitor your child's behavior. Together we can put a stop the bullying palm beach county.

This will put us front-line for bоth choices аnԁ thе external funding tо implement them.
taken each helpful cost savings wе cоuld produce. Homeland security initiatives hаvе allowed us tо develop a state-оf-theart epicenter within the County fоr security and аll emergencies. More than one million calls fоr service wеrе received last year, practically equaling the population оf the County. The ratio of Deputies on the market for еach call fоr service has decreased each year for thе past 4 years. Due to а greater number of vacancies bеіng held open, somе PBSO Street Teams havе been disbanded. The continuing number оf court-issued warrants to be served remains аn issue.
Crimes once moreѕt children anԁ the elderly continue. There іs nо debate as to thе requirement fоr efficient law enforcement and corrections services.

Thursday, January 26, 2012

As we enter the New Year in
Palm Beach County, I want to wish everyone good health, happiness, and
prosperity.

At the Sheriff’s Office, we will
continue meeting the public safety requirements for our large and complex county.
Despite the tough economic conditions, rest assured that we are addressing new
and ongoing law enforcement and corrections issues with innovative and
successful approaches.

With hundreds of associated county
deaths in recent years from drug overdoses, eliminating the prescription drug
black market has remained a top priority. My investigators, along with our
partners, have shut down many illegal “pill mills,” and we are going to make
sure the rogue doctors and pharmacists are punished. We will also be working
with groups like NOPE Task Force to educate youth and their parents about the
dangers of abusing drugs.

Other priorities for 2012 will
focus on our continued effort to dismantle gangs and return many neighborhoods
back to their residents. We have taken down six of the top 10 most ruthless
gangs in the county in the past four years, resulting in a 25 percent drop in
violent crime and a 50 percent reduction in gang-related homicides.

But the economy being the way
it is, our resources have been stretched in handling white-collar crime,
homelessness, and abandoned-home issues. Still, we’ve been able to keep our law
enforcement and corrections staffing intact to tackle these challenges. That’s
partially the result of our hardworking civilian volunteers who log more than
350,000 hours every year. They enable my deputies to concentrate on being in communities,
investigating crime, and working on solutions to keep our streets safer.

This year, I am also going to
keep advancing our local homeland security initiatives, including the state-of-the-art
epicenter to oversee any security and emergency operations. As chairman of a domestic
and homeland security task force for the entire region from Martin to Monroe
County, I am in a position to gain new equipment and staffing in combating the
threat of terrorism and handling major emergencies in our area, including Palm
Beach County.

Taking on all these important
initiatives and responsibilities takes resources, of course. So yet another
goal of mine is to better educate the community on what we do at the Sheriff’s
Office and why our services cannot be subjectively reduced, such as closing a
recreational facility or reducing library hours. Local taxpayers need to
understand that the economic downturn has put additional conditions on law
enforcement. Demand for public safety services, for instance, has gone up
because of population growth in Palm Beach County over the past decade.

No matter what, our mission
in 2012, just like in past years, is to safeguard the lives and property of the
people we serve, to reduce crime, and to enhance public safety while working
with our diverse populations to improve their quality of life.

We’re looking forward to a
great year at the Sheriff’s Office. I wish the same to all of you.